Breath of the Future

Chapter 21

**Day of heist**

"Alright, get your ass up. We have no time to waste today, we gotta meet Lester." Michael pushed, grabbing my arm to pull me off the couch.

"Alright, alright...Jesus," I grumbled.

I set my bowl of chips down on the coffee table in the living room and followed Michael. I went to grab my holster that I left over by the front door but he stopped me.

"uh uh, we are leaving that here. That's a legally purchased firearm. We do not need that thing being traced back to you or me or anyone else. Leave it here, Lester will take care of everything we need."

It was the day of the heist. I hadn't done anything this professional ever in my life. Sure, I had the criminal background that was needed but I was an illegal weapons smuggler back in the day. I stuck up liquor stores with Trevor. I had never done an in depth job with a real crew before and needless to say, I was terrified.

Michael seemed to be pretty well organized, but on edge. He knew the routine and had to drag me along with him for it. The last thing I wanted to do was ignore him.

He never bothered asking where I had gone a few days prior when I snuck out in the middle of the night to see Trevor, and Trevor and I hadn't spoken of the incident since. I tried my hardest to focus only on the heist and calm my nerves. Unfortunately, calming the nerves wasn't so easy.

Michael took me out to the garage and ushered me into his car. We were going to meet Lester at the garment factory and be on our way. The world seemed to be closing in around me, maybe because the reality of the situation hadn't set in yet.

The morning was hot, but there was a chill in the air. I wrapped may sweatshirt tighter around my body as I climbed into the passenger seat of Michael's car. He followed me, climbing into the drivers side and pressing the button to start the engine. His car still smelled new and was almost suspiciously clean. The leather seats let out an aroma of musk and money when I sat down. Michael made sure to mute the radio and drove us to the garment factory in silence.

When we pulled up outside the building, Trevor and Franklin's vehicles were already parked in the lockup. I was hesitant to get out of the car. Michael noticed and placed a hand on my leg comfortingly.

"Hey, sweetheart? You're gonna be just fine. I promise you, this is simple. There's no need to be nervous. If anything goes south, me and T have got you, you know that."

I looked up at him nervously, my eyebrows turned up in a scared expression.

"Can you promise me?" I pleaded.

"I promise. You're not the weak link, don't feel like you are. I know the stories from Trevor and I saw you take out that hillbilly fuck at the bar a few weeks ago. You're tough enough for this, it's just been a while, that's all."

I nodded and leaned closer for a hug, maybe something more, but Michael placed his hand on my chest to stop me and shook his head.

"Not now, we gotta get moving."

He climbed out of the car and I followed suit, taking the inner door of the garage up to Lester's office. The rest of the crew was already there, so we were the last ones.

"Ah, at last, the party has arrived." Lester sighed.

I crossed my arms and stared down at him. I wasn't much taller, but I was taller nonetheless.

Lester hobbled over to a cabinet in the corner of the room and tossed me a black backpack, instructing me to change into the contents that were inside. I stepped out and changed into the black compression jumpsuit that was in the bag. It felt like shimmying into a rubber glove. This thing was thin, but hot and hugged every ridge and definition of my body and I was certainly feeling a little self conscious. There were two back pockets on either side. I guess they couldn't waste any time with me possibly getting stuck in the vent on my way down. The bag also contained the ski mask and gas mask that were necessary for me, and I knew I was going to have a hard time breathing, but that was just a price I was going to have to pay.